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Friday, October 23, 2015

Is Your Foster Child SAD?: Identifying Seasonal Affect Disorder

By John and Diane.

It might be hard to tell with your foster kids, but at this time of the year if they are especially anxious, grumpy, sleepy and have difficulty concentrating they might be suffering from symptoms of SAD: seasonal affect disorder.

When days get shorter and the amount of sunlight exposure your kids have because of school and time spent indoors because of the weather changes, a study by the National Institute of Mental Health showed that three percent of kids may suffer from seasonal depression or SAD.

Now, with foster kids, who may already have many of the issues that are part of the seasonal affect disorder symptomology, more notably a change in eating (a craving for sweets) or sleeping patterns may be the key to determining if your child is also affected by the seasonal light changes.

Treatment for SAD is usually non-drug related and focuses on light-therapy, including dawn-simulating light alarms that gradually increase the light in the child's room to simulate a normal summer sunrise. Increasing outdoor winter activities to spend time in the sun and a healthy diet also help seasonal depression.

For more information check out the below article:

Seasonal Affective Disorder in Children

Did you know that children can suffer from SAD (Seasonal Affective
Disorder)? I'm embarrassed to admit that I just found this out recently,
after years of writing about mental health. Seasonal Affective Disorder
is a condition that can cause depression, fatigue and overeating, among
other things, and it is brought on by the change of seasons. According
to Winter Blues
by Normal Rosenthal, M.D., a survey done by the National Institute of
Mental Health (NIMH) showed that about three percent of children suffer
from SAD, with a greater incidence occurring in the last three years of
high school.

I'm surprised that it hadn't occurred to me before. After all, if
children could have clinical depression and other depressive disorders,
why not SAD? Apparently even animals can suffer from SAD. Of course,
it's worth nothing that all creatures on earth have a tendency toward
SAD symptoms in the winter, but when normal functioning starts being
impaired, it's time to take a closer look.

So, is there a chance that a child you know has Seasonal Affective
Disorder? Well, if he starts off the school year doing well, but his
grades start dropping after the holidays, it's possible. If she bounces
out of bed after eight to ten hours of sleep in the summer but can
barely drag herself out of bed after more than twelve hours of sleep in
the winter, it's worth looking into.
SAD in children can go undiagnosed fairly easily, especially in
adolescents, who are expected to be moody and have trouble getting out
of bed. A few seasons may need to pass before anyone notices a seasonal
pattern in behavior.

Symptoms of SAD in Children

A change in appetite, especially a craving for sweet or starchy foods

Anxiety

A drop in energy level

Irritability

Fatigue

A tendency to oversleep

Difficulty concentrating

Avoidance of social situations

As with diagnosing SAD in an adult, the single biggest clue is whether the symptoms are seasonal.
It's important that your child be evaluated by a qualified
professional. If you think that your child has SAD, chances are good
that your instincts are correct. But she still needs to see a doctor and
have other possibilities eliminated first, and any treatment should be
under a doctor's care, even if the treatment is purely non-drug.

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